Memorial photo restoration: getting one photo ready for the service
If you are looking into memorial photo restoration, you are likely getting ready to say goodbye to someone you love. Finding a good photo becomes one more thing to do in a hard week, and the best one is often decades old.
This guide is about that one photo. It covers how to choose it, how to take a picture of it without harming it, how to plan around the date, and what you will have in your hands on the day. It all starts with a picture taken on your phone.
Start with the photo that looks most like them
The right photo is the one that looks most like the person. It is the one the family sees and knows at once. Choose by the expression, not by the condition. It can be faded, yellowed, creased from years in a wallet, stained or torn.
Our artists repair this kind of damage every day, along with scratches, water damage and mold, and they can rebuild missing pieces. The price does not depend on how damaged your photo is, so you are free to pick the one you love. The aim is that the person looks like themselves, just as you remember them.
If you have two photos and cannot decide, call or email us and ask which one will restore best. If a relative has the only copy, they can take a picture of it with a phone and send it to you. The original stays where it is.
Taking the picture when it is in a frame or an album
You do not have to take the photo out. If it lifts out of the frame easily, lay it on a table. If it is stuck to the glass or to an album page, leave it there and take the picture right where it is. There is no need to tape a tear or clean the surface first. We work from the photo as it is.
Use good light from a window and no flash. Hold your phone straight above the photo and fill the screen with it. Look for glare, or for your own reflection in the glass. Take a few pictures and send the clearest one. If the photo is torn, lay the pieces together as well as you can.
Taking a picture with your phone means your original never leaves your house. It can go straight back on the mantel. If you would rather mail it in, write to us and we will sort it out with you. Mailing adds days, so a phone picture is the better choice when the date is close.
Counting back from the day of the service
Funeral photo restoration is mostly a question of days. You choose the speed when you order. Most orders are ready in 2 to 5 business days, and if the service is close there is a 24-hour option. The faster options cost extra.
Weekends are not business days, so order as early in the week as you can. Try to leave a day or two of room, because you look at the photo first and can ask for free changes.
Write the date of the service in your note to the artist. What sets your delivery day is the speed you choose, and you can still switch to a faster one after you order. If the day is very close and you are not sure, call or email us before you order. And if the service comes too soon, the restored photo is just as welcome at the gathering afterwards, on thank-you cards, or at home.
One restored photo, used many ways
Your restored photo is a digital copy that is yours to save, share and print. A photo for the memorial service or a celebration of life is used in many places on the day. It can go in the printed program or on a prayer card, into the slideshow, and into a frame by the guest book or on an easel. It can go with the obituary, and to relatives who cannot travel.
You can add prints when you order, in sizes from 4x6 to 16x20 inches, from $10. Nothing is printed until you have approved the restoration, and then we ship them. If the service is only days away, it is safer to have the digital copy printed near you, and to order our prints as keepsakes afterwards.
A black-and-white or sepia photo can also be colorized, as an optional extra at $19 per photo. There is no right answer. Some families love to see the person in color, and some prefer the photo as it was. It is your choice when you order.
Nothing is final until you say so
With memorial photo restoration, what matters most is that the photo looks like the person. You see the restored photo before anything is final. If the eyes, the smile or anything about the face is not how you remember, tell us what to change and an artist works on it again. Revisions are free and unlimited, and the more specific you are, the better.
If we can't get it right, you get your money back. No hassle. You choose your artist, $38 or $58 per photo, and you see the exact price before you pay. Brothers, sisters and grandchildren often ask for their own photo of the person, and there is a discount when you restore three or more photos.
The first step is a small one. Take a picture of the photo with your phone, right where it is. We take it from there.